Waverly Advisors LLC Has $3.41 Million Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Waverly Advisors LLC increased its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) by 22.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 26,443 shares of the conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 4,858 shares during the quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC's holdings in 3M were worth $3,414,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,574,414 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,493,655,000 after buying an additional 280,048 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,752,944 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $871,738,000 after buying an additional 755,155 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 25.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,153,924 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $794,410,000 after buying an additional 1,248,093 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of 3M by 9.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,689,486 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $734,456,000 after buying an additional 479,621 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of 3M during the fourth quarter worth approximately $636,767,000. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

3M Price Performance

3M stock opened at $149.44 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.41. 3M has a 52 week low of $96.76 and a 52 week high of $156.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.02. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $141.82 and a 200-day moving average of $139.83.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $5.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.78 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 100.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that 3M will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.95%. 3M's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.87%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 3M from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the company from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on 3M from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on 3M from $140.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Barclays upped their target price on 3M from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on 3M from $152.00 to $142.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, 3M currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $152.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Zoe L. Dickson sold 7,915 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.02, for a total transaction of $1,179,493.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $913,045.54. This represents a 56.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About 3M

3M Company provides diversified technology services in the United States and internationally. The company's Safety and Industrial segment offers industrial abrasives and finishing for metalworking applications; autobody repair solutions; closure systems for personal hygiene products, masking, and packaging materials; electrical products and materials for construction and maintenance, power distribution, and electrical original equipment manufacturers; structural adhesives and tapes; respiratory, hearing, eye, and fall protection solutions; and natural and color-coated mineral granules for shingles.

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